A single-cylinder hooligan-maker, the KTM 690 Duke is 330 lbs (curbside without fuel) and 67hp of two-wheeled fun, and we hope that the Austrians bring the KTM 690 Duke R our way as well. While we are on the topic of things missing from KTM’s American line-up, a decent supersport is painfully obvious, yet we can’t see the folks at KTM following the paths of other brands. That’s where our friend Luca Bar comes to mind with his latest concept: the KTM RC4. Using the KTM 690 Duke platform and its LC4 engine, Bar has designed a super-single full-fairing sport bike that takes the Austrian company’s “Ready to Race” DNA and applies it to an idea that is not all that disimilar to the Ducati Supermono.
When I sat down with Claudio Domenicali at the Ducati 1199 Panigale R launch, the now-CEO of Ducati Motor Holding was still just the General Manager of the Italian motorcycle company. Four weeks after our interview though, Gabriele del Torchio would leave Ducati for Alitalia; and Domenicali, a 21-year veteran of both the racing and production departments of Ducati, would take his place at the top of Italy’s most prestigious motorcycle brand. After reading our interview from Austin, Texas after the jump, I think you will agree too.
That Yamaha is working on a seamless gearbox is no secret, with Yamaha’s test riders currently racking up the kilometers around tracks in Japan. Recently, however, Spanish magazine SoloMoto published an article suggesting that Yamaha has already been using its new seamless gearbox since the beginning of the season. My own enquiries to check whether Yamaha was using a seamless gearbox or not always received the same answer: no, Yamaha is not using the seamless gearbox. To test this denial, I went out to the side of the track on Friday morning at Jerez to record the bikes as they went by.
After a very public father/son break-up between Paul Teutul Sr. and Paul Teutul Jr., a steroid-ring scandal involving Paul Sr., and finally a bankruptcy proceeding, it appears that Orange County Choppers is the impossible to kill multi-headed hydra of doom that we all knew it was, as the custom chopper shop is once again headed to the small screen and recruiting some talent, on and off the show. Looking for “someone who will work alongside Paul Senior, running the shop and helping build some of the best custom motorcycles in the world,” OCC says it will be back on television with a new show later this month. Please for the love of god, will someone give this man the attention he craves so dearly??! Or, just shoot us in the face.
We love us some concept bikes here at Asphalt & Rubber, and we have featured more than a few pieces of stunning design and imagination on our pages. Though, we can’t remember the last time one of these works of art were brought to us by a legitimate racing team, but that is what we have here with the Team Alstare Superbike Concept. A nod to the former Suzuki team’s return to the World Superbike Championship as the Ducati factory squad with Carlos Checa and Ayrton Badovini, Alstare has enlisted the help of designer Serge Rusak of Rusak Kreaktive Designworks to ink the shape of its futuristic Superbike concept, while Tryptik Studios handled the 3D modeling prowess.
If you didn’t watch Thursday’s pre-event press conference for MotoGP at Jerez, it is worth a viewing right to the end (assuming you have a MotoGP.com account). Building off the news about the NBA’s Jason Collins coming out as gay in a self-written feature in Sport Illustrated, my good colleague David Emmett had the courage to inquire about the culture and acceptance of the MotoGP paddock for homosexual riders. For the sake of accuracy, after the jump is a full transcript of David’s question, as put to riders Cal Crutchlow, Jorge Lorenzo, Marc Marquez, Andrea Dovizioso, Stefan Bradl, and Scott Redding, as well as those riders’ responses to David’s inquiry.
News that Suzuki plans on returning to the MotoGP Championship in 2014 should be old information for dedicated Asphalt & Rubber readers, and the Japanese company’s inline-four race bike was already spotted doing test laps last year by the eager eyes at Cycle World. Well the American print-mag has another set of eyebrow-raising high-quality photos of the 2014 Suzuki GSV-R to mull over from the Motegi race track, along with some technical insights provided by the venerable Kevin Cameron.
A surprise addition to BMW Motorrad’s 2013 model line-up, zie Germans have announced a new middleweight adventure-tourer, the 2013 BMW F800GS Adventure. Like its larger predecessor, the BMW F800GS Adventure is a more travel-ready and off-road capable build of the recently updated BMW F800GS motorcycle. Featuring a larger windscreen, panniers, and a bigger fuel tank capacity (2.1 gallons larger, for a total of 6.3 gallons of fuel), the BMW F800GS Adventure keeps the same 85 hp, liquid-cooled, 798cc, parallel-twin engine found on the F800GS, as well as the same chassis configuration. Pricing in the US will be $13,550 for the base model BWM F800GS Adventure.
Former 500cc World Champion Kevin Schwantz has certainly been in the news a bit these past few months, mostly for his involvement and falling out with the Circuit of the Americas and the Americas GP, but also more recently for his comments regarding Dani Pedrosa — we also sat down with Mr. Schwantz in Austin, and the Texan gave us some sobering insight into the future of American road racing. As if all that wasn’t enough, Schwantz is making a return to two-wheeled racing, and has entered the prestigious Suzuka 8-Hours endurance race with Team Kagayama racing alongside Noriyuki Haga and team owner Yukio Kagayama.
An interesting development on the aftermarket side of things has graced our desks, as Öhlins has released a “suspension control unit” (SCU) that upgrades the electronically adjustable suspension on the Ducati Multistrada 1200 S so that it becomes a semi-active suspension system. Whhhaaaat??! So, if you’re the proud owner of a pre-2013 Ducati Multistrada 1200 S, and you think that your electronically controlled Öhlins suspension is no longer boss, now that Ducati has released its Sachs-powered “Skyhook” semi-active suspension pieces on its new batch of Multistrada sport-tourers, there is a remedy for your motolust.
Triumph is recalling certain bikes from its crop of 2012-2013 Triumph Explorer and Triumph Explorer XC motorcycles because the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) on the certification label is incorrect. The error means that the affected motorcycles fail to comply with the DOT’s certification requirements, and thus need correcting to be road-legal.
Yamaha is recalling 8,700 units of its 2009 Yamaha YW125 scooters, better known as the Yamaha Zuma 125 to two-wheeled urbanites. Affecting machines made between July 2008 and April 2009, the recall concerns a possible improper clearance in the internal fuel pump components, which may cause an inadequate supply of fuel to the engine.
Triumph Motorcycles is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Triumph Daytona 675 and Triumph Street Triple motorcycles, along with certain 2012 Triumph Thunderbird and Triumph Thunderbird Storm motorcycles, for wheels that were assembled with bearings of an unknown quality.
Continental has begun a voluntary recall for its ContiMotion line of sport-touring tires. Affecting 1,700 units in the market, Continental says the tires in question are sized at 180/60R16 and under certain conditions these tires may have uneven wear, groove cracking, and in some cases even belt lift.
It goes without saying that these circumstances would leave the tires unsafe for use, though Continental has not received any reports about accidents resulting from these conditions. Most affected by the situation are Honda Gold Wing 1800 owners, especially in cases where there has been over-loading and under-inflating of the tire.
If you need further proof that the devil is in the details, Triumph is recalling 244 units of its 2013 Triumph Trophy touring bike because of an incorrect tire data label.
Affecting bikes that were manufactured between September 5, 2012 and November 29, 2012, the Triumph Trophy’s tire data label fails to conform to the labeling requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 120 and the certification requirements of 49 CFR Part 567.
BMW is recalling 2,385 units of its 2012 & 2012 BMW S1000RR superbikes because of a faulty kickstand. Affecting machines built between September 2011 and December 2012, the recall addresses the attachment bolts to the sidestand, which could start to loosen their way off the motorcycle.
Harley-Davidson is recalling 2,798 units of its 2012-2013 Harley-Davidson VRSCDX Night Rod Special motorcycles because of a loose license plate bracket. If the license plate bracket becomes loose, it could twist and interfere with the rear tire, or even slice the rear brake line, which could result in brake failure.
BMW is recalling over 2,000 K-bikes from 2007 & 2008 for brake fluid that could foam under certain conditions. Affecting BMW K1200 S, K1200 R, and K1200 R Sport motorcycles, if the brake fluid foams, it could lead to reduced braking power, which in turn could result in a crash. BMW owners at risk to the foaming brake fluid will have their motorcycles retrofitted with a screen insert from BMW, free of charge.
Honda is recalling 1,542 units of its 2012 Honda NC700X motorcycles for faulty outer drive plates on the bike chain drive, which was improperly heat-treated and could fracture during use. If a outer drive plates fracture, the NC700X could unexpectedly lose propulsion, which increases the risk of a crash and rider injury.
Triumph is recalling 10,366 units of its 2006-2009 S Street Triple, Street Triple R, and Daytona 675 motorcycles for a faulty regulator/rectifier, which can overheat and prevent the motorcycle from charging properly, or at all. With the electrical system not charging the battery, the battery could fully discharge, and ultimately stall the motorcycle. As such, there is a risk of a crash and personal injury to the rider and/or passengers should the motorcycle stall because of the discharged battery.
